The following bands on Friday at Soundstage have cancelled: ROTTING OUT (due to surgeries that a band member must undergo), ANTISECT (due to a family matter that a band member must be present for), and ENDORPHINS LOST (van broke down and they can't tour now)....

Also, on a recent visit to the US embassy, ORATOR was told that they cannot come to the US next month, so they will not be playing on Saturday at the Edison Lot. The band is confident that they'll be able to come here next year, and if so, we will book them then. We will be giving most bands playing on Saturday at the Edison Lot a longer set time and NOT announcing a replacement.

The three Soundstage cancellations have been replaced by Impaled, Pneumatic Slaughter, & ACxDC (who have a new album on the way).

The festival has also announced the lineup for free shows at the nearby Sidebar (218 E. Lexington Street) on every night of the festival, with doors opening for each show at 8pm and bands starting at 9. This means that there are basically 20 more bands on the MDF lineup. Some notable names include Bastard Sapling, Skelptarsis, Ashencult, Old Lines & Yautja (THEY ARE EVERYWHERE). This is all on top of the fest itself and the Misery Index / Immolation / Black Breath / Noisem preshow on Wednesday the 21st. So yeah, you'll have no shortage of metal show options in Baltimore that week.

Check out the full lineup for those free Sidebar shows (organized by date), and the day-by-day schedule for the fest, below...

While North America will probably never be able to give the EU a run for its money when it comes to huge blowout metal festivals in the Wacken or Roadburn vein, the lands on this side of the Atlantic are hosting an increasing number of smaller but more targeted (and thereby more appealing, if you ask me) shindigs. Hot on the heels of yesterday's inaugural Deathwish Fest announcement comes another first-timer fest: Southern Darkness Fest, which will take place in Tampa, FL on August 23. As the fest site puts it:

Southern Darkness Festival brings the best of extreme and experimental music right to Tampa's historic district of Ybor. More than 20 bands will deliver a diverse range of heavy music, from Post Rock all the way to Grindcore. With a lineup that is second to none, SDF is bound to leave a mark in Florida's heavy music scene and turn heads worldwide.

Organized by music fans for music fans, SDF sets out to create a special experience for fans and artists alike. The historic district of Ybor is not only the perfect setting for an artistically minded crowd, but also houses Tampa's best live music venues - all in walking distance from one another.

Though Southern Darkness will take place in the historic seat of American death metal, its lineup ironically doesn't include any death metal -- Maruta and Yautja (see? they're everywhere) are as close as it comes. Most of the fest's big-name draws are post-metal or sludge bands: Pelican, Black Tusk, Zoroaster, Junius, Mouth of the Architect, A Storm of LIght, and so forth. There's also a solid grind/hardcore contingent -- the aforementioned Maruta, Phobia, Weekend Nachos, Coke Bust, Strong Intention, and more.

The fest will be organized along CMJ-esque lines; it'll take place at a number of venues simultaneously, with a single ticket pass earning you entrance to all of them. (If you know Tampa, you may be familiar with them: The Orpheum, Crowbar, Ybor Live.) Specific show details are still to come. Tickets will be $35 for presale and $40 on the day of the fest, which is pretty reasonable, given that most of this fest's attendees will probably have to travel for it. They're not on sale yet, but will be on an unspecified date in late April; in the meantime, you can keep an eye on the fest's Facebook for updates.

More bands will be announced soon, but the full initial lineup is below...

Yautja are seemingly everywhere these days. (Which is okay, because they rule.) Not only did they just play a shitload of SXSW dates, including our Invisible Oranges showcase, and not only are they touring with the post-Gaza bangers Cult Leader (who are currently streaming their debut EP) in May, but they've also been announced as part of an exciting mini-tour with live favorites Black Breath & NYC fixtures Mutilation Rites, both of whom will be on their way to their respective Maryland Deathfest appearances. The short run will also include the grind band Theories, whom I don't know much about but whose recorded work sounds promising. (Check some out below.)

The five-date jaunt will hit NYC on 5/28 at Santos Party House. Tickets go on sale this Friday (4/4) at 10am. They're only $13 if you get them in advance (before fees), and it's also a 16+ show.

Black Breath were also initially announced for NJ pop punk festival Skate & Surf which takes place the weekend before their tour starts, but they're no longer listed on the festival's website. We haven't gotten any official word, but the site does say "lineup subject to change without notice."

Check out the full set of dates and some recent music by each band on the tour, below...

In case you've forgotten: Utah metalcore sluggers Cult Leader are basically Gaza after a shakeup at the vocal spot. The first song they debuted from their upcoming EP suggested that not a lot had changed with this group of musicians aside from their name; Lucero's vocals are quite similar to ex-Gaza singer Jon Parkin's, and the instrumental unit still rockets between jittery tech runs and doomy slams.

Cult Leader are now streaming that EP, titled Nothing For Us Here, which you can stream below via Slug Magazine. Unsurprisingly, the whole thing pretty much picks up where Gaza left off...which definitely isn't a bad thing. If anything, I'm even more excited for Cult Leader's upcoming tour with Yautja now than I was when it was announced a few weeks back. Said tour hits NYC at Grand Victory on May 16 with local help from Tiger Flowers and Divider. Tickets for that show are still available. Don't miss it.

Nothing For Us Here comes out on April 15 via Deathwish Inc.; preorder it here. Stream it below, and check out both Cult Leader and Yautja's (slightly different) tour schedules below...

Nashville's Yautja put out their killer first album back in February, and the band recently wrapped up a batch of dates in support of it. I saw them live something like five times before and during their busy SXSW run, which included an appearance at the Invisible Oranges showcase. The sludge/grind fusion these guys turn out on record is more than engaging, but live, their material becomes cartoonishly heavy. They're a must-see band.

Yautja are teaming up with another exciting (but somewhat less new) band for a North American tour: Cult Leader, who are effectively Gaza with a different name and vocalist. The two are pretty much a perfect fit -- both pair fiddly high-tempo acrobatics with giant doom slowdowns, and both do best in person, where you can feel those grooves shake the floor. (Assuming that Cult Leader have retained Gaza's ridiculous low-end firepower.) The joint tour will hit NYC at The Grand Victory on 5/16; they'll be joined by well-suited locals Tiger Flowers and Divider. You can buy tickets here; chances are good that this one will sell out.

Check out each band's full run of dates below. Their tours don't match up perfectly, so make sure to check both bands' schedules if you live outside of NYC...

The night after our official SXSW showcase, and only a couple hours after our first of three day parties, we put on a metal showcase with our metal blog Invisible Oranges on Thursday (3/13) at the Quantum Lounge in Austin. It's not a venue you'd normally see a metal show in, and it was a little surreal that the blue-lit-up bar kept its TVs on, playing closed-captioned versions of Malibu's Most Wanted and VH1's '40 Greatest Pranks' as the bands blasted their heavy jams from a corner. But it was a great time.

The show kicked off righteously with Houston's retro/stoner doom band Venomous Maximus, and then came the metallic Mars Volta-isms of power trio Wild Throne. Up next was Yautja, who were one of the buzzier heavy bands at this year's SXSW thanks to a killer blend of sludge and utter weirdness. We had also caught them a couple nights earlier at Pitchfork's Show No Mercy showcase and they did not disappoint at either one.

Making things even more utterly weird, Toby Driver's experimental metal band Kayo Dot followed, covering tons of different genres throughout their set. And then Converge/Cave In side project Mutoid Man knocked everyone out of zoned-out mode with their bluesy swagger and tech-y fills. In addition to material from their 2013 debut LP, Helium Head, they did two covers, including a Dio-era Sabbath song for which they brought out female guest lead singer Sarabeth Linden (who fronts Dio cover band Holy Diva), and the intensely heavy version of The Animals' "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" that they included on their album under the name "The Manimals." Finally, Savannah sludge masters Black Tusk wrapped up the show, in typically great form.

South by Southwest. Maybe you've heard of it. Anyway, it starts in about a week, turning Austin, TX into one giant cacophonous concert where you can't swing a free canvas tote bag full of complimentary energy drinks without hitting a musician vying for your attention. It's actually pretty fun -- apart from the wasted spring breakers everywhere -- but it can be overwhelming. In an effort to help, we've already highlighted metal at SXSW and given you 10 NYC artists that we think are worth seeing, and here's a list of 50 artists we're excited to see at SXSW from all over the world (a few cross over from those other two lists). More than a few are playing one of BV's many events in Austin this week -- and if you're going, do stop by.

We know most people are NOT going to SXSW (and if you're in that group, you may be sick of hearing about it already), but many of these acts are touring around the US on either side of SXSW so it's maybe worth a gander too. We've also got a handy Rdio playlist with a song from each artist.

An embedded version of that playlist, plus our list of 50 artists we wanna see at SXSW (in alphabetical order), below...

On Wednesday (3/13), it's the first of four Converse x Thrasher Death Match day parties at the Scoot Inn (1308 E 4th St) from noon to 6 across two stages with heavy representation from Earthless and The Shrine, plus some fun non-metal like Black Lips, Trash Talk (who also play the free Thursday BV party at Red 7), Cherry Glazerr and more. Free to the public.

Stereofly is also throwing a free party at Javelina Bar (69 Rainey St) with Yautja, Primitive Man, Gnarwhal and more.

There's also a not-free Heavy Metal Parking Lot day-into-night party at The Lost Well (2421 Webberville Rd) with Wino's reformedSpirit Caravan, The Shrine, Kylesa, Lazer/Wulf, Truckfighters and more. You can get advance tickets to that one.

Wednesday night, Relapse Records (who signed Iron Reagan, who do play SXSW but not this show) throws their showcase at The Dirty Dog (505 E. 6th St) with Windhand, Christian Mistress, Nothing, Obliteration, Primitive Man and Pyrrhon. You can also catch Nothing for free at the Thursday BV party at Red 7 which Trash Talk is also playing.

Not far from there, Roadhouse Management / Nuclear Blast Records will be presenting their showcase inside at Red 7 (611 E. 7th St) with Orchid, Kadavar, Scropion Child, BP Fallon & the Bandits, Mothership, Sweat Lodge and The Well. (Not metal, but outside at that same venue on the same night is our BrooklynVegan showcase. And hey, there are some heavier bands like Touche Amore and Frameworks on the bill.)

Also on Wednesday night, you can catch Wrekmeister Harmonies at Remedy (209B W. 5th St) with a non-metal lineup of Sean Nicholas Savage, Audacity, Tyvek and more.

We do of course hope you come, but you can also catch Scale the Summit, The Ocean, Rivers of Nihil, Felix Martin, Vattnet Viskar, The Atlas Moth and Silver Snakes at the Metal Injection showcase at the Dirty Dog (505 E. 6th St).

During the day on Friday, New England Metal & Hardcore Fest also has a free party at G Pen Annex (corner of 6th and Red River) with Xibalba, Alpha & Omega, Comeback Kid, Backtrack, Counterparts, Downpresser and more.

That night, MetalSucks puts on their showcase at The Dirty Dog (505 E. 6th St), headlined by Animals as Leaders, and also featuring sets by After the Burial, Ringworm, Iron Reagan, Mutoid Man, Whores and East of the Wall.

The last day of the free Converse x Thrasher Death Match parties happens on Saturday (3/15), and though there's no metal at all on this one, you can still rage to Perfect Pussy and Diarrhea Planet.

And if you've got a badge, you can check out some of the metal panels during the day, including From Riffs to Bits with James Williamson (The Stooges) and Buzz Osborne (Melvins) on Friday at 12:30 PM, and Has Metal Lost Its Edge? with Brandon Stosuy (Pitchfork), Chris Gigg (Woe), Emilie Friedlander (The Fader), former BrooklynVegan contributor Fred Pessaro (Noisey), and Kim Kelly (Pitchfork) on Thursday at 3:30 PM.

That's a good amount of choices of the heavy persuasion for this year's SXSW, but if you're trying to narrow down the things you want to catch, we've put together a list of 11 metal bands we're looking forward to seeing. Check out that list (in alphabetical order) and along with flyers and set times for the above-mentioned shows, below...

Invisible Oranges and BrooklynVegan are pleased to announce that we'll be hosting our second annual SXSW metal showcase on Thursday, March 13, at the Quantum Lounge (303 W. 5th St. in Austin, TX). People with festival badges and wristbands are welcome, and additional tickets will be available at the door. Doors are at 7pm, and the show begins at 8. Here's the lineup and running order:

We mentioned a few weeks ago that talented Nashville sludge/grind act Yautja are coming to NYC for a show at The Acheron on 2/9, along with Psalm Zero, Geryon, & Kevin Hufnagel. Since we last spoke, it's been announced that the Acheron show is part of a full tour, and all dates are listed below. Tickets for the Brooklyn date are still available.

The tour is in support of their killer debut LP, Songs of Descent, which comes out on February 11 via Forcefield Records. We already posted one song from that album, "Concrete Tongue," and now you can check out another, titled "Denihilist," which we just premiered over at Invisible Oranges. From our writeup:

Nashville's Yautja, named after the aliens from the Predator series, have an almost preternatural grasp of the perfect lurch. This skill is on full display in this exclusive premiere of "Denihilist," the second track from the band's upcoming debut album, Songs of Descent. The song wastes no time in constructing a colossal riff of the sort that has allowed Gojira to somewhat improbably scale the heights of contemporary metaldom. Yautja's glowering racket is of much more mongrel stock, as the band mix the tumbling urgency of hardcore with the frantic pelt of grindcore, and dredge speedy death metal licks through a bottom-heavy, corrosive sludge that recalls the halcyon swamps of the early '00s.

Check out "Denihilist," along with "Concrete Tongue," another recently-released album cut, "Faith Resigned," and the list of tour dates, below...

Psalm Zero, the Brooklyn experimental metal duo comprised of Andrew Hock (Castevet) and Charlie Looker (Dax Riggs, ex-Zs/Extra Life), just finished prepping their debut album, The Drain, due out on March 4 on Profound Lore. It's an album to look forward to--Psalm Zero's material so far has managed to uniquely blend industrial, metal and a clean/harsh vocal mix to strange and compelling effect. Listen to the album's title track, and watch a video of them performing it at the soon-to-be-closed 285 Kent, below.

Psalm Zero's playing a show on February 9th at the Acheron with Yautja, Geryon (also featuring a member of Castevet) and Kevin Hufnagel (Dysrhythmia, Vaura, Gorguts). Tickets are on sale for what's sure to be an interesting evening--between Psalm Zero, Yautja's grind, Geryon's bass-guitar-only death metal and Kevin Hufnagel's chilled-out experimental wizardry, things are gonna get weird. Flyer below.

Psalm Zero will also be playing down at SXSW. Stay tuned for more details on that.

Meanwhile, Yautja, whose lineup includes members of Coliseum, Gnarwhal, and Nameless Cults, have a few EPs and splits out and they'll release their debut album, Songs of Descent, in February via Forcefield Records. You can stream its single, "Concrete Tongue" (via Lambgoat), along with the tracklist below.

After a relatively quiet autumn, NYC-based creepy crawlers Occultation (who share guitarist Ed Miller with the great black metal band Negative Plane) will take their, erm, occult rock on the road for the second time this year in December. The six-day tour kicks off with an appearance at the Acheron on December 4, along with the thoroughly un-Google-able punk band Survival (not the Liturgy side project), Yautja, and Razorheads. The tour then loops out towards the midwest, including a Chicago stop on December 7 at the Ultralounge.

Tickets for the NYC date are on sale now. All dates are listed, along with an Occultation track stream, below...